


you light me up

by estrojenn



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe - Soulmates, M/M, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Ventus briefly appears
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-28
Updated: 2020-04-28
Packaged: 2021-03-02 04:29:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,139
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23899042
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/estrojenn/pseuds/estrojenn
Summary: Riku walked slowly over to the calm tide; he was mesmerized by the sound--the push and pull was comforting the ever increasing ache in his chest. He clutched his mark, deep in his thoughts--as deep as a five year old could go--and was soon thrust out of them as he saw a waving hand come in front of his face. He jumped backwards, tripped, and stumbled into the sand.“Hi!” the friendly face all but yelled in Riku’s face.
Relationships: Kairi & Riku (Kingdom Hearts), Kairi & Sora (Kingdom Hearts), Riku/Sora (Kingdom Hearts)
Comments: 1
Kudos: 62





	you light me up

**Author's Note:**

  * For [birdtalk](https://archiveofourown.org/users/birdtalk/gifts).



> Happy birthday to my dear friend @birdtalk!
> 
> lots of carly rae jepsen was listened to in the making of this fic

When Riku turned 5, he asked his grandmother about the mark on his chest. The mark was shaped like an elongated heart with winged tips turning inward. It was cool to the touch and appeared permanently seared into his body. It did not scare him when he saw it in the morning—just made him extremely curious as he traced over the indents.

His grandmother chuckled and pulled him up to have him sit on her knee. She carded her fingers through Riku’s hair and held him close. She always spoke softly but sternly, as if everything she said was a heavy secret.

“Your mark is unique to you and one other person that shares your same destiny. Your love for them will burn strong and you will feel their presence until you both come to accept the love you have for each other,” she told him, smiling gently.

Riku said nothing in reply and only moved his hand to his chest. He was too young to understand the true impact of sharing his destiny with another but he was overjoyed with the idea of meeting someone with the same mark. 

The next day they left for the beach and his grandmother led him by the hand toward the other kids. Riku scanned the area and his chest suddenly felt hot and he was overcome with an odd stinging sensation. 

“Grandma, I don’t know...”

“Go on, make friends with others. I’ll be over in the shade.” 

Riku walked slowly over to the calm tide; he was mesmerized by the sound--the push and pull was comforting the ever increasing ache in his chest. He clutched his mark, deep in his thoughts--as deep as a five year old could go--and was soon thrust out of them as he saw a waving hand come in front of his face. He jumped backwards, tripped, and stumbled into the sand. 

“Hi!” the friendly face all but yelled in Riku’s face. He extended a hand out to Riku and pulled him up from the sand. The boy had bright blue eyes and scruffy brown hair and most importantly, a hand that did not let go. 

“Hello...” Riku replied. “You scared me.”

“Oh no! I’m sorry...” The boy had a large grin with a missing tooth as he said it so Riku assumed that no, the boy was not sorry at all. “I’m Sora! Let’s be friends!”

“Riku,” he found himself reflecting Sora’s grin. Sora tugged his hand and skipped over to where the other kids were playing. Riku felt warm and this time the feeling in his chest didn’t feel overbearing or ready to burst. He knew then and there, he found his destiny with the gentle push and pull of the boy with the missing tooth. 

* * *

Today was sticky and hot, an unfortunate combination for Riku as he was moving into a small home left to him by his grandmother. The letter sent to him with a few keys said:

_ I hope you find your destiny. _

She could be very cryptic when she wanted to. The letter said nothing more than that sentence and an address to the home. Riku weighed the decision in his palm. He spent summers long ago with his grandmother on the Islands and helped her around the general store she ran. There was nothing holding him back, he had the savings and the boredom to do anything. 

He moved his hand to the mark that sat under his shirt and it never burned once in all of his life. At some point he resigned to the idea he’d never find anyone to make him feel the warmth that his friends often gushed about. He was fine with the feeling of absence, really, he was. 

He shook his head, trying to shake the thoughts out before they overpowered him. He moved to open the door to the tiny cottage home that he spent his summer afternoons. The door creaked and as his eyes adjusted to the dark room, he saw that nothing changed. Riku walked forward and ran his hands around the old furniture gathering dust. It was musty in here, exacerbated by the humidity. 

Riku moved to open the windows in the living room when he heard a shout, then a yelp, and finally a crash. He ran out to find a woman with red hair clutching a basket and lamenting over the spilled goods. Riku reached out to grab the canned peaches and the coconut milk. 

“Here,” he offered the cans back to the woman. She looked up, eyes wide and not expecting the help. 

“Thank you!” She accepted the cans and placed them in her basket. “I swear I am not this clumsy. I was  _ supposed _ to have help but help flaked on me.” She gathered the last of her things and stood up, dusting off her pink skirt. 

“Hi!” she huffed. She walked toward the entrance of the home and left Riku behind. She peered into the house and turned back around to face Riku. “My name is Kairi. You’re Riku, right?” 

Riku hesitated, “Uh...”

“I’ve been running your grandma’s store ever since she decided to leave for the stars. Everyone thought she was dead since she left without notice, but instead she’s on a very long road with her soulmate. How romantic!” 

She moved to hand the basket to Riku and smiled expectantly.

“Sorry, I’m still confused about what's happening.”

“Hmm, well you’re going to take over operations for the store right? I’m the one-half of the welcoming committee!”

Riku laughed, “Where’s the other half?”

“Occupied, apparently. He runs a catering business next to the store.” 

They made their move into the house. Kairi helped sort the items into their proper place and made the place a bit brighter. When Riku finally sorted the last of his items in the house, Kairi brought him a glass of something very cold. 

“A toast!”

“To what?” Riku asked. He looked at the drink with curiosity, it was definitely booze. 

“Your destiny,” she declared as she drank fervently. 

* * *

The alarm rang rudely at 5 in the morning and all Riku could think was how bad of an idea was to drink ‘til the sun set. Kairi had left at some point during the evening with someone honking loudly outside until she finally stumbled into whoever’s car demanded her presence.

He made his way to the general store aptly named ‘General Store’. The café Kairi mentioned earlier was right next door and it would seem empty if it were not for the faint glow of light toward the back of the café. It took him a minute to get back to reality as his chest started to feel sort of sting. He pushed the thought back, he’d deal with it later. 

When he entered the store he saw the familiar tuft of red hair covering the face of the new friend he made. He poked her, hoping to not startle her--was she asleep?    


A groan sounded through and she raised her head weakly. 

“How are you alive?” she asked Riku. 

“I could ask the same of you. How did you even get home?” Riku made it over to the other side of the counter and took a stool to sit right by her.

At the question, Kairi jumped up with a shout. “Just remembered! Gotta bring over the other half of the welcoming committee! Be right back.” She skipped out of the store, leaving once again a bewildered Riku to think about the strange people he’s bound to meet on this island. 

He went to organize the stock out of the boxes and into the shelves--taking the time to re-familiarize himself with the shop. Not much had changed except for the picture board that was kept behind the register (before there were only 3 baby riku pictures and now there were 15 with his ever awkward middle school pictures).  _ I’m gonna have to take all these down. How embarrassing... _ . 

It was twenty minutes of rambling around before the door slammed open. Riku turned around surprised in the silence turning to sound. A figure ran fast past Kairi and slammed his hands onto the counter--an excitable hop tapping on the wooden floor. 

“Riku!” yelled the person with messy brown hair and ocean eyes. “It’s me, Sora! Remember?” He grinned eagerly at Riku, expecting a hearty yes in reply.

Riku hesitated, there was a warmth slowly building in his chest. Was it hot in the store? It couldn’t be hot. It was barely 6:30 AM. 

“Ah,” Riku forced out. “No, I don’t, maybe?” He was doubtful that he could properly remember who Sora was. 

He hadn’t been to these islands in 15 years. His parents didn’t want him visiting ever since he was swept away by the current and pulled under. All he remembers is the cool darkness that nearly took him and the vague feeling of waking up to multiple voices shouting his name.    


“I guess it would have been a long time. I mean I don’t even really remember, you see I was only 4, but your grandma talked about you all the time!” Sora gleamed, it was really distracting, and oh my god Riku felt so hot, burning up. 

“Oh well, I hope I meet your expectations,” Riku bantered and hoped that his face didn’t look as red as he felt.

“You already are.” Sora somehow got even closer than before. They were drawn to each other--a magnetic connection. Riku found himself mirroring Sora’s silly grin. 

“Alright boys,” Kairi interrupted with a hand on Sora’s shoulder. “Sora, you got morning deliveries and I have to show Riku the ropes.” 

“Aw okay, I’ll see you later Riku,” he promised with a wink. “Kairi, come help me load the truck.” Off he went, tugging Kairi along by hand. 

When the door shut and the two were out of sight, Riku let out a sigh of relief. He rubbed at his chest and tried to soothe his rapidly beating heart. Riku stopped believing long ago in the idea his grandmother sold to him as a “soulmate”. He knew there were many people who swore up and down on the idea of people sharing the same destiny but he never was able to share the sentiment. Maybe, this was it. 

But, maybe, it wasn’t. 

Riku moved toward the large windows, pretending to organize the merchandise nearby. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Sora and Kairi chattering excitedly about something. Sora’s eyes were bright and dazzling, could it be he was already enamored? Riku let out another sigh, this time one of resignation. It was no use to fall in love with a near stranger. He needed to move on. 

* * *

Riku fell into a comfortable rhythm in this new place he called home. He managed the store just fine with Kairi helping him out. There were so many new colorful visitors every day and most, Riku determined, were friendly. They all seemed to recognize him from the embarrassing amount of pictures of him posted around the store. He tried to take them down but the moment he took one of the pictures, Kairi yelled at him. 

“I swore to your grandma these wouldn’t get taken down!” she yelled and strong armed Riku into putting the pictures back.

Sora came to visit around noon most days and usually brought some new dish invention he wanted to try out. Riku tried not to get too close to him, it hurt him too much to think about someone else’s soul mate. That never stopped Sora, however. Every moment that Riku would try to disappear into the stockroom, Sora would swing the door open and yell about something, anything. This action would be welcome if it weren’t for the loud thumping it caused in his chest. 

One day, Riku stumbled upon Sora in the back room, half on top of Kairi, mumbling about something he couldn’t quite catch. They couldn’t see Riku since their backs were turned away. Riku saw the delicate movements between them both and the fragile look on Sora’s face as he continued whatever it was that was bothering him. Sora’s eyebrows furrowed as Kairi whispered something to him and carded her fingers through his hair. 

Riku turned around quickly, he felt as if he were witnessing a moment too personal--too intimate. He let out a breath he had been holding for much too long and moved his hands to his chest to steady himself. Was the burning sensation coming from his mark any different to the building emptiness in the pit of his stomach? Maybe it was possible to swallow both down--ignore it--cast it away. What Riku felt in that moment did not matter to him (but it did, it mattered a lot). 

He distracted himself near the register and fiddled with the stacks of flyers for local events he was supposed to place on the community board. He was reading one of the flyers for an art class when he felt someone’s eyes on him. He looked up toward the front and saw that the person with scruffy blond hair and blue sky eyes kept shifting his gaze from the items on the top shelf to Riku. 

“Do you need help?” Riku asked the other person. 

“Yeah, actually, I’m too short for these shelves I think.” The person demonstrated this fact by attempting to reach for the items, adding in a hop and a grunt for emphasis.   
  
Riku snorted and made his way over to address the issue. “I got it. What did you need?” 

“Just the devil’s food cake mix,” he replied. “I don’t think I’ve seen you around before? What’s your name?” 

Riku reached easily for the item and handed it to the customer with an easy smile. “Riku. Yours?”

  
“Huh?” 

“Your name?”

“Oh yeah, I’m Ventus. But you can call me Ven.” Ven realized he had not yet taken the cake mix--he was easily distracted by Riku. 

“Ven!” shouted a familiar voice. Both Ven and Riku turned around to see Sora with an odd expression on his face. “What are you doing here?” he asked. 

“Vanitas wanted cake so I’m getting cake,” Ven replied. 

“I’ll ring you up,” Riku said and walked toward the cash register where Sora was now positioned. He was oddly close to Riku, inching closer as Ven made his way to them. 

Riku could feel his mark ignite as Sora moved his hand near Riku’s own. They were nearly touching but not quite. The atmosphere was building a charge. He feigned ignorance for now and took to charging Ven for the item. While Riku couldn’t see Sora, he could feel the pressure of his gaze on him. Ven didn’t seem to mind, keeping a grin on his face and exchanging the money for the good. 

“Thanks for the help! I’ll see you around.” Ven made his way out of the store without any incident. 

As he disappeared out of view, he could still feel Sora--much too close for comfort. Riku was definitely feeling flushed but hopefully Sora didn’t notice. When Sora didn’t make the first move to put some distance, Riku turned around to face him. 

Riku saw the odd expression return to Sora. He was so close to him he could notice a light dusting of pink on his freckled cheeks. Riku couldn’t help move his gaze down to Sora’s lips, (they looked so  _ soft _ , he thought). He could easily just move a half step closer and kiss him. It’s as if his mark was begging him to as the thought crossed his mind. 

When neither of them made the move to speak, Riku tried first by clearing his throat. The sound brought Sora back to reality but Sora did not move away from Riku. 

“Hey, didn’t you say you needed help painting the fence?” Sora asked. 

  
Riku was the first to back a few steps away. He tried not to notice the way Sora’s forehead furrowed at the action. “Yeah, but we can do that later. You look like you’re about to pass out.”

Sora laughed, seemingly to cover up whatever thoughts were displayed on his face, and moved his hands behind his head. “Are you sure?” 

“Yes, go home before I have to sick Kairi on you.” 

Sora only hummed and said his goodbyes before departing. Riku tried to distract himself from the now empty, cold feeling that resonated from his body and surroundings. He felt screwed. 

* * *

“Riku!” Sora interrupted his thoughts one afternoon. He was sitting on a stool next to Riku, fiddling with a rubik’s cube that Riku passed to him to keep him busy for a while.

“I’m right here, you don’t need to yell,” Riku responded as he flipped to the next page in the book he was reading. It was a slow day--it always was. In a few quick motions, the book was snatched out of his hand. With no reason to not look at the perpetrator, he slowly moved his gaze toward Sora. “Hey.”

“You weren’t paying attention to me correctly,” he gestured to the stolen book. “Let’s go out! It’s been two months since you’ve gotten here and I haven’t even taken you to my favorite spot.”   


Riku shifted to lay his head on his hand, tilting his head and taking in the warmth that radiated from the other man. He smiled despite himself and said, “Where would that be?”

“It’s a secret,” Sora whispered and placed a finger to his lips. 

Riku moved his gaze to his lips--they looked so soft...if only...He felt awful for thinking this way but his heart would not shut up and he forced himself to quiet the fluttering beat in his stomach.

“Okay, it’s a date,” Riku slipped out. He tried his best to maintain a calm composure and hoped that the creeping blush wasn’t visible. That mark of his was stinging, begging to be noticed. 

“Great! I’ll pick you up tonight at 7!” Sora jumped off the stool and stretched. He took off toward the door with a big smile on his face and greeted Kairi on the way out.

Riku shook his head at the display of exuberance. Kairi made her way over to the counter and inspected the book that was left lying on the counter. Once again, the book was snatched away before Riku could realize what was going on. Kairi was skimming the contents and she moved away from Riku’s desperate hands.

“Poetry, Riku?” she smirked. “You’re such a sap.” She placed the book gently on the counter and looked up at him with a wicked smile. “So you have a date?”

Riku felt the color drain from his face. He completely forgot in that moment that Sora wasn’t his to date. He didn’t even mean to say anything of the like, it just slipped out. 

“Oh gods, I’m so sorry Kairi--I didn’t--” Riku stuttered.

"Whoa whoa, what? Why are you apologizing?” Kairi questioned, brows furrowed.

“I--uh...”

“C’mon, spit it out.”

“Sora’s your soul mate,” Riku sputtered quickly and hung his head in his hands. Maybe if he hid his face long enough he could disappear. “I knew this and I didn’t even mean to say anything.”

“Riku.” He did not look up.

“Riku!” She said impatiently. Not wanting to add fuel to the fire, Riku looked up reluctantly. “He’s not my soul mate. Not in the least. My best friend, yes, but oh gods no I would never.” She laughed through the last sentence, giggling uncontrollably. 

“I-what?” He stared at Kairi’s shaking form.

“Oh my--no he’s not my soul mate! We don’t share the same mark!” She stopped laughing, “Wait...do you?”

“I don’t know.”

“But you do know the signs! Right?”

“Maybe! I don’t know! Maybe what I’m feeling is a crush that won’t go anywhere.” He sighed with resignation. “I think I’ve felt this way before--maybe I met Sora when I was younger but I don’t remember--this feeling...it’s not as intense as it was.”

“Well, you could always ask him,” Kairi offered, as if that weren’t the most impossible thing she could have suggested. 

“Maybe,” Riku ended the conversation there. His head was doing backflips in order to conclude that Sora couldn’t be his soulmate. He would have said something. Right? 

* * *

The clock read ten to seven and Riku was nervously tapping his fingers on the counter. It was an incredibly slow day, only 3 people had come in to shop in the past 3 hours. Kairi had long stopped trying to calm his nerves (she called him useless at some point). Riku tried returning to his book but the words no longer made any sense. 

At that moment, the door opened and a familiar figure walked over. Riku looked up at the man and felt the air leave his lungs, the familiar sensation of warmth crept over him. 

Sora smiled, bright as day. “Are you ready?” he asked. Riku took in his appearance. It hadn’t changed since he came in earlier but he noticed that he was carrying a basket of sorts and a large bag. 

“Yeah,” Riku managed to say. He went around the counter and waved goodbye to Kairi (who was trying very hard not to eavesdrop). “Where are we going?” He held the door open, taking the large bag from Sora. 

“Hmm, you’ll find out. It’s like an adventure!” Sora skipped forward, his laugh piercing Riku’s chest as if it were nothing.

“Sora, wait!” Riku ran after him, laughing along with him and ignoring (welcoming?) the blooming warmth and the building ache in his chest. He followed him close behind--he could always catch up and even run past him but he had no idea where to go, so he let Sora lead, he’d follow no matter what. 

Sora stopped right in front of a dense bush area and looked back at Riku who was only a couple steps behind. “Ah--um...Give me your hand. It’s easy to get lost.” Sora extended his hand for Riku to hold. Riku stepped forward and after a brief moment, took his hand. It was as if they had done this a thousand times before, maybe in a different life there wouldn’t have been that hesitance. 

They walked through the dense bush in silence, Sora’s grip was tight but comforting. “Stay close to me,” Sora said and looked back at Riku before continuing on. He squeezed Sora’s hand in response. Despite the dimming light, Sora was confident in where he was going. The brush started to thin and he could hear the roar of the ocean close by. 

“Careful,” Sora warned. “There’s a tiny ledge we have to hop off.” Another minute passed walking but they finally reached a clearing. Sora hopped down, still holding Riku’s hand, and set the basket down he was carrying next to him. He extended his other hand and Riku realized he was waiting for Riku to hold that one too. He complied and used it to steady himself down the tiny ledge. 

The ocean was glimmering and a pink hue was cast over the sky as the sun set for the day. The beach itself extended itself only for a mile lengthwise--it was most likely buried during high tide. The cool breeze that blew in was welcoming--it was still hot and humid despite it being closer to 8 PM.

Riku felt Sora release one of his hands from him and used the other to tug him toward a dry spot on the sand. They shifted around and maneuvered the blanket Sora packed onto the ground. They sat there for a minute without speaking before Sora took out the food from the basket he brought. 

“A sandwich?” Riku inspected the package Sora handed him.    
  
“Yep, and a tasty one at that.” 

Riku opened his and stared down at it. He wasn’t particularly hungry, for the butterflies in his stomach didn’t leave room for much. He took a bite so as to not worry Sora and hummed in agreement. 

“Do you remember coming here as a kid?” Sora asked abruptly. He wasn’t looking at Riku, his eyes were focused on the waves pulling in and out. 

“No, not really. I know I came here when I was 5 but my parents became really protective after I nearly drowned. I don’t remember much about this place.” Riku looked at Sora and saw a downcast expression. “But I’m glad I’m here now.” 

“Really?” Sora looked up at Riku, this time with a real smile. “I’m happy you came back.” 

He stood up and stretched, his shirt lifting up to expose a sliver of skin. Riku’s breath caught and he looked away quickly. Oh, he was really in for it now. Sora walked a few paces away, kicking up some of the sand, and turned to face Riku.   


“Let’s go swimming! It’s way too hot out.” He reached out for Riku again. 

“Sora, I don’t know how to swim.”

“I won’t let you go, don’t worry.” He gave him an easy smile and insisted with a movement of his hand. “Come on, last one in is a rotten paopu fruit!”

“That’s cheating!” Riku stood up quickly and ran after Sora. Sora reached the water first but had to stop because he was busy taking off his shoes and shirt. Riku remembered he had to do the same but hesitated on taking off his t-shirt. Sora would see the mark if he took it off so he opted to keep it on. By the time he decided Sora was already fully in the water. “Come on, slowpoke!” he yelled.

Riku stood and stared at the water licking back and forth. It was warm, everything about this island was warm. The weather, the water, and most importantly, the person sitting in the ocean trying to pull him in. It made Riku feel hazy but was that due to his mark? Was this the destiny that was intended for him? He took a step forward and then another--he didn’t miss the cold. 

Once the water hit his hips, he stopped. Sora swam back toward him. Riku wasn’t really paying attention to his surroundings since suddenly he was brought down by a force he could only think was Sora. Water splashed everywhere, causing his soaked bangs to lay flat against his forehead. 

“What was that for?!” he asked with no venom in his voice.

“You looked like you were thinking too hard. You don’t have to go in any further. Plus the ocean is calm right now.” 

Riku glanced at Sora and splashed him in order to get the smirk off his face. Sora yelped and retaliated. This battle went on for another five minutes and ended when Sora dove to tackle Riku again. Thankfully, Riku was already sitting down and easily caught him without much effort on his part. 

Neither of them broke their embrace. Riku was mesmerized by the droplets falling down Sora’s cheek, mesmerized by how blue his eyes and how long his eyelashes were. His eyes flickered down--he didn’t have a mark in the same exact spot as Riku did, only it was slightly lower, toward the side of his ribcage.

It was exactly the same as his. The same heart-like shape with elongated wings. Without thinking, he moved his right hand to hover over it slightly. He let out a small gasp when he could feel the heat radiating off of it. It was burning much like his own. 

“Riku?” Sora snapped him out of his thoughts. His lips were parted and wet. He was so close to him but neither of them made the move. “Riku? What’s wrong?”

“I--” Riku let Sora go gently and moved away slowly. He couldn’t complete his thought--there were too many passing through his head. He felt that overbearing emotion come over him and choked down a sob. Did Sora know this?

He felt two hands cradle his face and he opened his eyes slowly to reveal Sora looking up at him earnestly, tears falling down the curve of his face. 

“You’re crying,” Riku noted as he wiped the tears away from his face. 

“So are you. What’s wrong?” he asked again.    
  
He let out a breath before speaking. “I have the same mark.” He moved his shirt down slightly for it to peek through. 

“Wait, wait a minute did you not know??” Sora did not look at all surprised. All he did was flash him a smile and laugh softly. His hands fell to cover Riku’s own. “Riku, the marks burn in the presence of the other! You had to have known?”

Riku groaned, “I didn’t! I thought you were with Kairi!”

Sora only laughed harder, pressing his forehead to Riku’s chest. The tears were long forgotten. “Oh Riku, what am I going to do with you?”  
  
Riku tilted Sora’s chin up and took in the breathtaking sight of him. “I can think of something I’ve been wanting to do for a while.”

He leaned in slowly, taking his time to preserve this moment. Sora, however, was having none of that and took him down by the shirt, meeting his lips with a hurried passion. His lips were as soft as Riku imagined. They tasted of salt, from the tears or the sea--Riku couldn’t tell. All he could feel was the back and forth of their lips and hear the sound of the short gasps. Riku moved his hands to grasp at Sora’s hair and tilted his face to kiss him better. 

When they finally broke apart, both feeling slightly dizzy from the intense emotions, Riku laughed softly and held Sora close to him. Sora held him tightly as well. Riku felt stupid for even thinking that this wasn’t how it was supposed to end. 

“Rikuuu...” 

“Hmm?” 

“Kiss me again?”

Riku leaned in again, only to be interrupted by a wave pushing him off balance. They fell together toward the water, falling on top of each other. He spluttered, Sora laughed.    
  
“Let’s head back, the tide is coming in.” Sora stood up slowly, careful not to topple over, and extended his hand out to Riku like before.    
  
Riku took his hand and gave it a squeeze before heading out of the water along with Sora. He let go briefly only to hook his arm around Sora and planted a kiss on Sora’s wet hair. 

It was cold out. Riku didn’t mind. The fire in him was not as intense or overwhelming as before but he felt a warm light coat him--all thanks to Sora. 

Everything would be okay. He had his light next to him. Always. Forever. 

**Author's Note:**

> Find me on twitter @khdamage  
> (I don't tweet all that much but I'll follow back!)


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